The Poor Will Be Glad

A compelling call to carry God's mercy and compassion to the hurting people of this world This eminently practical book by two leading experts in the field of poverty reduction offers a clear plan to help ordinary Christians translate their compassion into thoughtful action.
Authors Peter Greer and Phil Smith draw on their personal experiences to provide proven solutions for effectively reducing poverty. With photographs by Jeremy Cowart included throughout, The Poor Will Be Glad examines the pitfalls of traditional approaches and outlines a new model of economic development aimed at breaking the cycle of dependency.
Through microfinance and employment-based solutions, people who share God's heart for the poor can reorient their efforts from giving handouts to offering a hand up, helping others provide for their families and regain their dignity. This book provides straightforward guidance for individuals and groups eager to carry God's justice, mercy, and compassion to the hurting people in our world.

This eminently practical book shows how ordinary people can help fight poverty around the world. Focusing on proven initiatives such as microfinance and employment-based solutions, the authors outline specific steps we can take in leading the charge against spiritual and physical poverty. Also includes photographs by award-winning photographer Jeremy Cowart (www.jeremycowart.com).

Publishers Weekly

It’s unusual to discover an engaging, detailed and affecting manual delineating a Christian approach to alleviating global poverty. That’s what Greer and Smith have given readers in this resource-rich guide to how individuals, businesses, churches and denominational groups can use the basics of microfinance—the provision of financial services to the poor—to partner with communities and find “employment-based solutions with proven results for effectively reducing poverty and extending the kingdom of God.” Greer, president of the Christian relief organization HOPE International, and Smith, a retired businessman and philanthropist, are enthusiastic realists, aware of the challenges facing those who are severely poor; the difficulties, new skills and patience required in churches that want to be catalysts for change; and the complexities of partnering with corporations that may have other, sometimes conflicting, agendas. The book works in large part because of the real-life experience, passion and dedication that both men, who write different chapters, bring to the table. Their biggest achievement may be helping to push skeptical readers off the fence about the potential of religiously funded microfinance—and giving interested parties plenty of practical tools to get started. (Nov.)

Peter Greer holds a Master of Public Policy from Harvard's Kennedy School and a BS from Messiah College. He is the president of HOPE International, a global faith-based microfinance organization serving hundreds of thousands of entrepreneurs in fourteen countries. A frequent lecturer and a featured panelist at Harvard's International Development Conference, Peter and his wife, Laurel, live in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, with their three children.

Phil Smith, who holds an M.B.A. from the University of Tulsa and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Oklahoma State University, is a philanthropist and private investor who sits on the boards of publicly-traded Eagle Rock Energy Partners, L.P. and three private companies. He is the coauthor with Eric Thurman of A Billion Bootstraps: Microcredit, Barefoot Banking, and the Business Solution for Ending Poverty. Phil and his wife, Shannon, live in Tulsa, OK, with their four children.